IIT graduates turn to ISKCON
By Nina Mukherji

The meaning of life, finding yourself and discovering God are questions that many individuals are seeking answers to. And not just monks sitting in a monastery high atop a hill. But regular people - young and old alike from different walks of life are looking for these answers. In fact, we found some IIT graduates giving up their careers in order to follow a spiritual path.

A significant number of IITians joined ISKCON as devotees giving up very lucrative careers. Interestingly, Sri Madhu Pandit Dasa the President of ISKCON Bangalore and Chairman of the Akshaya Patra Foundation is also from IIT.

An unusual path, some may say for these individuals who could get just about any job that they desired. Arvind Lochana Dasa, an ISKCON devotee and an IITian himself, says this about the Krishna conscious philosophy, “It is not a religious sentimental organization but a very scientific movement to understand the nature of God or Absolute Truth and the nature of the “Self”.  Many IIT students attracted to intellectual pursuits study science not just for a degree but to truly know the answer to various fundamental questions of life”. Arvind also adds that, “Unfortunately modern science cannot answer such questions since they mostly deal at the gross level of observation and experimentation. So many turn to and adopt the ISKCON philosophy that seems to answer the deeper question of life.”

The Founder Acharya ‘Srila Prabhupada’, who represents a chain of bonafide spiritual teachers, gives some logical and scientific answers to the fundamental questions of life. Satya Gaur Chandra Dasa an M.Tech from IIT quit his job at Novell Software, giving up a lucrative career to join ISKCON. But he felt that this was the obvious choice. He adds that “the spiritually thirsty IIT students get lots of satisfaction from reading such convincing and clear answers given by Srila Prabhupada. Hence many choose to pursue a spiritual career instead of the usual routine of earning money and maintaining the social status amongst the band of friends and relatives.”
 
Some people visualize spiritualists as living a life of a recluse in a forest or an ashram with no connection with the outside world. However Arvind Locahana Dasa says, “At ISKCON we are taught a revolutionary spiritualist concept – one who will use all the resources available in the world but will utilize them in the service of God and mankind. In ISKCON, all the modern amenities can be found and it almost works like a corporate organization but with a spiritual goal in mind.” Adhoksaja Das another IITian also agrees with him and adds, “Hence modern technology, computers and machines need not be rejected but can be used in the spreading of the Bhagavad Gita and benefitting public.”